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Teresa Ford · 11-10-2011, 05:43 PM

Dogs, dew claws, tails and ears, IMO, I hate doing things to animals that are purely for cosmetics, or human convince.
I work actively to get the AKC and Breed Clubs to revise their standards concerning docked ears and tails. I think it is wrong that a full tailed Yorkie can not be shown.
(Yes, if I were breeding Yorkies, I would dock tails. Good breeders want to have dogs as close to standard as possible.) BUT I would encourage pet only owners, to let their Yorkie keep a natural tail. Dew claw removal is for medical reasons, like having baby teeth removed. Gracie has dew claws and has sagged them twice. What a bloody mess, and God love her, the torn dew claw was painful and stayed sore for about 2 weeks.
I am pro spay and neuter too. Some of my friends are on the fence about it because of new research. I may be wrong about it but, still belive the benefits out weigh hormone benefits.
Cats ? IMO Train them and let them keep their claws. It is natural, and I think like their whiskers, they need claws.
PEOPLE alter their bodies too ! So much is cultural, we pierce girl babies ears and routinely circumcise boy babies. People (not are all are teenagers) pierce their body and get tatoos of things they may later regret. We glue on fake nails, color our hair, have breast implants, tummy tucks and wear false eyelashes, change our teeth and and have hair implanted or removed. So it makes perfect sense that some of us want our dogs to look the way we think they should look. Even if it means cutting off their tails and part of their ears. I feel bad about some of our values, so superficial.... and perhaps compleatly selfish too.

11-10-2011, 05:43 PM	#45
Teresa Ford Therapy Yorkies Work Donating Member Join Date: May 2011 Location: Central, Florida Posts: 3,863	Dogs, dew claws, tails and ears, IMO, I hate doing things to animals that are purely for cosmetics, or human convince. I work actively to get the AKC and Breed Clubs to revise their standards concerning docked ears and tails. I think it is wrong that a full tailed Yorkie can not be shown. (Yes, if I were breeding Yorkies, I would dock tails. Good breeders want to have dogs as close to standard as possible.) BUT I would encourage pet only owners, to let their Yorkie keep a natural tail. Dew claw removal is for medical reasons, like having baby teeth removed. Gracie has dew claws and has sagged them twice. What a bloody mess, and God love her, the torn dew claw was painful and stayed sore for about 2 weeks. I am pro spay and neuter too. Some of my friends are on the fence about it because of new research. I may be wrong about it but, still belive the benefits out weigh hormone benefits. Cats ? IMO Train them and let them keep their claws. It is natural, and I think like their whiskers, they need claws. PEOPLE alter their bodies too ! So much is cultural, we pierce girl babies ears and routinely circumcise boy babies. People (not are all are teenagers) pierce their body and get tatoos of things they may later regret. We glue on fake nails, color our hair, have breast implants, tummy tucks and wear false eyelashes, change our teeth and and have hair implanted or removed. So it makes perfect sense that some of us want our dogs to look the way we think they should look. Even if it means cutting off their tails and part of their ears. I feel bad about some of our values, so superficial.... and perhaps compleatly selfish too. __________________ Teresa & Rubin, Gracie, Abba, Ginny Joy and Julia Rose Act like a dog, be kind, forgiving, and loyal.